Addressing machine and similar printing machine



Feb. 5, 1929.

J. KRELL ADDREssING MACHINE AND SIMILAR PRINTING MACHINE Filed Oct. 15, 1925 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 IIA/rre no V6 Wild l "WW/4 Feb. 5, 1929.; l 1,700,803

J. KRr-:LL

ADDRESSING MACHINE AND SIMILAR PRINTING; MACHINE Filed OOL. 15, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Feb. 5, 1929. 1,700,803I

J. KRELL ADDRESSING` MACHINE AND SIMILAR PRINTING MACHINE Filed Oct. 15, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 'j grieven-fof 4 Patented Feb, 5, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH HELL, F IBERLIN-PANKOW, GERMANY,

ADDRESSING MACHINE ND SIMILAR PRINTING MACHINE.

.Application led October 15, 1925, Serial No. 141,835, and in Germany October 23, 1925'.

My invention relates to printing, for instance, addressing machines of the type described in my U. S. Patent No. 1,532,890, and more particularly to the mechanism by -which Ithe impression platen is operated. This mechanism comprises a lever which partakes in the rocking motion of the printing arm unless arrested by a detent and, when so' arrested, operates the impression platen.

It is an object of my invention to simplify this mechanism which in the machine referred to is rather complicated as it comprises three weighted levers and their accessories and, moreover, involves the inconvenience that the detent for the lever `which operates the impression platen and will be termed the impression lever is released as often as the printing arm returns to its initial position.

With the object of improving the mechanismv described I provide electromagnetic means for operating the detent by which themechanism is much simplified, and I lalso provide means for holding the detent in operative position until the next printing plate is fed forward so that it is possible to print any desired numberof inscriptions with the same plate without releasing the detent for each printing operation.

In a machine constructed on these lines the electromagnet is so arranged with respect to the impression lever that when it has been excited its armature will act as a detent for the lever and will be retained in its operative position by an automatic catch until the next printing plate is fed forward.

In the drawings, a mechanism embodying 'my invention as applied to an addressing machine is illustrated by way of example.

In the dra-wings Fig. 1 is a plan view of the table of the machine showing the printing station and the parts arranged in its vicinity,

Figs. 2 to 6 are sections on the line II-II in Fig. 1, showing various positions of the mechanism. More particularly,

Fig. 2 shows the printing arm in its initial or upper final position, with the electromagnet not excited,

Fig. 3 shows it in the same position', with the electromagnet excited, I

Figs. 4 and 5 are illustrations corresponding to Figs. 2 and 3 as far as the electromagnet is concerned, but showing the printing arm in its lower nal or operative position,

Fig. 6 illustrates a case of failure,

Fig. 7 is a section on the line VII-VII in Fig. 1 showing the electromagnet and its frame on a larger scale.

The general arrangement of the mechanism will best appear from Fig. 1 in which a is the table of the machine, a, a are parallel jibs extending along the edges of a slot in the table in which a feed block 20 for the printing plates b is reciprocated by a feed lever 35, 36

.through the medium of a link 20', feeding the plates I) along` in the direction of the arrow 30, 2 is the printing arm which is adapted tol rock about a pin l 0n the table a', e is the impression lever YWhichis supported on the same pin,'21 is the impression platen which is adapted to be reciprocated in the head of the arm 2 by the impression lever z above the printing station to which the printing plates b are fed by the lever 35, 36 and the 'block 20, n is the electromagnet which operates the detent for.the impression lever z, and 22 is a multiple switch in the path of the plates b by which the electromagnet n is Suu-plied wit-h l current.

The means for operating the feed lever 35, 36 and the .rocking printingiarm 2, and the source of electric energy for the electromagnet n are not shown.

The printing plates b which are supplied to the machine from va. magazine, not shown, are provided With projections c on their lower faces which' are adapted to close the contacts of the multiple switch 22 when moving past it on their way to the printing station at 21. This closes the circuit of the electromagnet n' which is indicated diagrammatically by the two leads m, and causes the detent for the impression lever .e to become operative as will be, described in due course.

Referring nowto Fig. 7, the electromagnet vtwhich is secured below the table a in vertical position, is equipped with a frame 23 of inverted U-shape. 24 'is its armature which is ful'crumed in the frame 23 at 24: and 28 is an L-shaped detent pawl which is fulcrumed on the armature 24 at 28 and is normally held with its longer arm in a recess of the armature 24 by the pressure of a spring 29 on its shorter-farm. 25 is the spring catch which is fulcrumed on the frame 23 at 25. 25 is its hook-shaped lend which is adapted to engage below the detent pawl 28, and 26 is a spring at the other end of the catch which tends to pull its hook 25 toward the detent pawl 28. The catch '25 is engaged by the 4slotted end 31 of a push rod 31 which is operatively con- Anected with the feed lever 35, 36, as will be gaging a detent z at the end of the lever. 4,

5 is a double-armed lever fulcrumed on the printing arm 2, 3 is a link connecting the lever '4, 5 with impression lever s, 6 is a link connecting the double-armed lever with a lever 7 on a cam 27 in the head ofthe printing arm 2 which when rotated advances the platen 21, and 21 are the springs for pulling the platen back when it has been released by the cam 27. .2 is a projection at the lower end of the printing arm 2 which is normally engaged by the lever .2.

The push rod 31 is connected with the feed lever 35, 36 through the medium of a bar 34 and a lever 33 so thatwhen the bar 34 moves in the direction of the arrow 38 against the action of a pull-back spring 35 of the lever 35, 36, the push rod 31 is displaced in the direction of the arrow 32. y

The operation of my novel mechanism is as follows:

The cards or the like to be printed are placed above the printing plates in the printing station below the platen 21. When the electromagnet is not excited by a printing plate ZJ closing its circuit m by means of its projection 0, the printing arm will reciprocate but the impression platen 21 will not be advanced so that no printing operation is performed. With the armature 24 and the detent pawl in the position shown in Figs. 2

and 4 in which the armature is not attracted,

the impression lever z is-not influenced by the detent pawl 28 as its detent z', passes above the pawl. Therefore, the arm 2 will return from the position in Fig. 4 into that in Fig. 2 without an impression being made as the impression plate 21 does not descend as far as the printing plate Z) as will appear from Fig. 4.

When, however, a printing plate 4is fed to the printing station by the block 20 the multiple switch 22 will be operated by its projection c as shown for the second contact in Fig. 5, causing the electromagnet 'n/ to attract its armature 24 and placing the detent pawl 28 within reach of the detent z. of the impression lever a. This position is shown in Fig.

3 which also shows that the catch 25 engages below the pawl 28 with itsv hook 25". When the printing arm 2 is moved downwards from its initial position, Fig. 3, into the printing position, Fig. 5, the detenta of the 4lever z is retained by the pawl 28 so that the lever c rocks through a certain angle with respect to the arm 2, operating the linkage 3, 4,

5, 6 and 7 and advancing the impression platen 21 into the printing position so that now an impression is made on the paper or the block 2O is returned to its initial position by a rotation of the lever 35, 36 in the direction of the arrow 37. which causes the bar 34 to be displaced in the direction of the arrow 38 and the push rod 31 in that of the arrow 32.`

This causes the catch 25 to release the arma.- ture 24 which now drops and is reattracted upon the following plate b closing the circuit of the electromagnet n. The projection 2 causes the lever .e to return into the position in Fig. 2 with the printing arm 2. The relative position of the lever z and the arm 2 is not changed during the downward motion of the arm 2 as the friction between the two levers is considerable. Consequently, the lever z will be permanently in the position indicated in Fig. 2 unless moved from it by the detent z and the detent pawl 28.

When it is desired to print repeatedly with the same plate I) the feed mechanism is arrested as is usual in such cases, but the catch 25 lis not released so that the armature 24 and the detent pawl 28 remains in the attracted position notwithstanding the fle-energization of the magnet n. The armature, as described, will only be released when the feed mechanism starts to operate again and moves forward another printing plate.

The yielding connection of the pawl 28 with the armature 24 is provided with the object ofl preventing damage to the mechanism when its operation is disturbed due to any cause, for instance, carelessness. Suppose that the link 3 has been disconnected from the lever 4, 5 as shown in Fig. 6 and that the elecltromagnet a is energized while the detent a is .above the pawl 28. N ow if the pawl were rigidly connected with the armature 2,4 it would strike the detent e a sharp blow and cause damage or seizure in the mechanism whereas with the spring 29 interposed between the armature 24 and the pawl 28, the

pawl is able to yield by moving into the posielectromagneticmeans operated by the rintl ing plates foreausmg the operation of) said impression plat-en, means for feeding4 printing plates to said impression platen, and means loperatively connected with said feeding means for locking and releasing said electromagnetic means and comprising a bar adapted to be displaced iii-parallel to the feeding motion, a spring catch for locking said electromagnetic means, and a push i'od operatively connected with said bar at one end so asv -to be displaced transversely to said bar and operatively connected with said spring catch at the other end.

2. A printing machine comprising a'table, a printing arm adapted to rock on said table,

an impression platen-on said arm, an impression lever on said arm which is adapted to partake in its rocking motion and is operatively connected with said impression platen, an electromagnet on said table, a switch adapted to be operated .by the printingplates for cont-rolling the circuit of said electrom'agnet, an armature adapted'to be attracted by said electroinagnet and to arrest said'impression lever with respect to said printing arm, means for feeding printing plates to said impression platen, a spring catch adapted to arrest said armature after it has been attracted, and means operatively connected with said feeding vmeans and adapted to throw out said catch when said feeding means are operated.

3. A printing machine comprising in combination a printing arm, an impression platen on said' arm, an impression leverY in frictional engagement with said arm so as to be normally movable therewith and also operatively connected with said impression platen, an clectromagnet positioned in proximity to said impression lever and vcontrolled by the printing plates and including an armature 4o forming a trip which wlien'energized is movable into the path of the impression lever so that the latter is locked before the printing arm has reached its lowerinost position.

4. A printing machine comprising in combinati on a printing arm, an impression platen on said arm, an impression lever in frictional Yengagement with said arin so as to be normally movable therewith and also operatively connected with said impression platen, an electromagnet positioned in proximity to said impression lever and controlled by the printing plates and including a pivoted armature, a trip adiacent the armature, a

resiliently controlled detent pawl arranged the impression lever to affect locking of the 6@ latter prior to the printing arm reaching its lowermostposition, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.l

5. A printing machine as claimed in claim 3, wherein means is provided for feeding printing plates to the impression platen and means operatively connected with said feeding -nieaiis for locking and releasing said electromagnetic means.

In testimony whereof l atx'my signature.

'JOSEPH KRELL.. 

